Jaya-gopāla: I thought I heard it said that you are in this world without being a part of it. You are in the world without being a part of it, being a part of it, like the lotus flower which floats on the water.

Prabhupāda: Yes, that is the way. That is the way of understanding. Just like I am in America. It is very easy to understand. I am not adopting any ways of life as the Americans do. So I am not in America. Not only myself, all my disciples who are following me, they are also not Americans.They're different from American behavior,American ways of life. In that sense I'm not in America. I am in Vṛndāvana because wherever I go in my apartment or in my temple I live with Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa consciousness. I don't accept any consciousness of America. And I teach my disciples also to take to that consciousness. So one who takes to that consciousness, he is also not in America, not in this world.It is... I have given this example many times.Just like a king and a bug is sitting on the same throne. The bug is biting and the king is ruling.It is not that because the bug is there on the throne, he is king, or the king is sitting with thebug, he is bug. Why this difference? Difference of consciousness. The king knows his duty. He is working in his duty; therefore he's king. And the bug knows his business, to bite; therefore he's bug. But sitting on the same place. But because due to different consciousness, one is bug, one is king. So if you take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and if you remain in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, you don't belong to this world. You are no more bug, you are king. Change this consciousness.Even apparently you may seem to remain with the bug, you are no more bug.

Tuesday, 28 April 2015

Prabhupada: Vijnana. Jnana-vijnana. [break] ...not this
science, experimental. That is not science. Vedic knowledge is science.

Pusta Krsna: So there is no experimental science in Vedic
culture.

Prabhupada: Experimental science is condemned. What you will
make, ex... You are imperfect. What is the value of your experiment? Therefore
it is rejected. Whatever you'll do, that is imperfect. First of all you become
perfect; then you make experiment. But you are... You remain imperfect, and you
making experiment. What is the value of it? [break] ...is no experimental
knowledge. All established truth. That is vijnana, or science.

Pusta Krsna: Established truth.

Prabhupada: Yes. The sun rises on the eastern side; that is
established truth. You cannot change it. And that is vijnana. Man dies. This is
established truth. You cannot make any change by

experimental knowledge. This
is vijnana. Nrpa nirnita: "It is already settled." In the Vedic
knowledge there is no such thing as laboratory or experiment, discovery,
nothing.

Pusta Krsna: People blindly would accept that cow dung was
purified without having to test it.

Prabhupada: Yes. But you make experiment; you will find it
all right. So we save time. [break] ...no experiment. [break] ...experiment has
become successful? Hm?

Pusta Krsna: Well, they've cured certain diseases by
experimentation.

Prabhupada: That is success? You stop disease. What is this,
"cure disease"? Malaria, if it is not here, it is somewhere there.
And if I am not suffering from malaria, I am suffering from syphilis. So what
is this cure, experiment? Disease must be there. So you stop it. Then it is
success.

Pusta Krsna: So it is not possible to stop disease.

Prabhupada: No. How it is possible?

Pusta Krsna: Is it worthwhile to try to prolong life?

Prabhupada: It is also condemned. Prolonged life... Suppose
you live hundred years and a tree lives five thousand years, ten thousand
years. Then what is the use of prolonging life, life like this? Is that very
good life?

Pusta Krsna: No.

Prabhupada: Standing in one place for ten thousand years?
Why should you prolong your life? For suffering? You are suffering, that is
your problem, so what is the use of prolonging your life? This is foolishness.
What do you gain by prolonging life if you are suffering? Stop suffering. That
is wanted. How you can stop suffering? With suffering, prolonging life, what is
the benefit?

Pusta Krsna: Just means more, longer suffering.

Prabhupada: Yes. And even if you prolong life, how long
you'll prolong? There are trees. They are thousand times prolonging than your
life. In... What is called? San Francisco, the Golden...

Pusta Krsna: Redwood trees.

Prabhupada: Redwood trees. One redwood, already seven
thousand years old, they told me. So what is the benefit, seven thousand years
standing in one place, very long? Hm? What is the benefit? You are trying to
prolong life. Very good idea. But what is the use of prolonging life while
suffering? One side, you are trying to prolong life; the other side, for acute
suffering, one is committing suicide. So why this contradictory proposal?

Harikesa: Well, only some people commit suicide. As far as
I'm concerned, I'm very happy. I have my car, my air conditioner...

Prabhupada: That means you are fool number one. That means
you are fool number one. As soon as you say, "I am happy," it is
immediately proved that you are a rascal, fool number one.

Pusta Krsna: But everyone is afraid of death. They don't
like the idea of dying. Put if off.

Prabhupada: Yes. So therefore, you cure that first of all;
then prolong life that there will be no death. Then you prolong life is... Make
some understand. Can go this side?

Harikesa: So it's not possible that anyone's happy? There is
no possibility of anyone being happy.

Thursday, 23 April 2015

Director: What's your answer that such a small percentage of the population, tiny percentage of the population, accept the philosophy that Krishna is God.
Prabhupāda: Tiny percentage. Just like there are so many stars in the sky, and there is one moon. In percentage the moon is nothing. If we take percentage of the stars, the moon is nothing. But moon is important than all the nonsense stars. (laughter) But if you take percentage, he has no percentage vote. But because he is moon, he is important than all these rascal stars. This is the example. What is the use of taking percentage of the stars in the presence of moon? Let there be one moon, that is sufficient. There is no question of percentage. One ideal man.
Conversation Melbourne - May 21, 1975

Thursday, 16 April 2015

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Very honest and sincere people normally appreciate our movement. Only those who are envious...

Prabhupāda: Envious we don't care for. We don't mind. Never care for them. I didn't care anyone, any times, even my Godbrothers. Neither I care just now. I'll go on with my... Why? We are doing our duty. That's all. Under higher authoritative order. Have no fear. It is not personal gratification.

Wednesday, 8 April 2015

Prabhupāda: Nothing happens accidentally. According to Vedic literature, there is no such word as "accident." The word is adṛṣṭa: There is cause; I cannot see it. Adṛṣṭa. It is not in my vision, but there is cause. There is no question of accident.

Harikeśa: What about when somebody is born with three arms or eight toes?

Prabhupāda: There is karma, cause, but I cannot ascertain. To me the cause is invisible. Therefore, we take adṛṣṭa. But there is cause.

Harikeśa: They always reason that because somebody is born like that, that sometimes somebody could be born from an ape like a man.

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Harikeśa:
Over a very long period of time... Let's say in one ape somebody was
born without hair, and then after a long period of time in the same line
from that person who was born without hair...

Prabhupāda: But why the ape does not give birth now?

Harikeśa: But we have not seen all the apes.

Prabhupāda: But how do you suggest?

Harikeśa: It's just a theory.

Prabhupāda: Then
you'll... Then what you have not seen, how you can suggest? What is not
in your experience, how you can suggest? Then anyone will suggest any
nonsense, and we will have to accept?

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: So that is the rascaldom.

Prabhupāda: That is rascaldom. How you can suggest?

Harikeśa: Even he says it was just a theory.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa:
But now, Prabhupāda, they say that they have been to the moon, and
we're saying that the moon is so far away. And they have their pictures
also to prove it.

Prabhupāda: Picture you can manufacture here.

Harikeśa: And they have earth dust as if it came from the moon.

Prabhupāda: And the other scientist says this kind dust can be had here. So what is the proof they went there? It can be collected here.

Harikeśa:
And their dust does not reflect. They say the moon is reflective, but
the dust and the pictures, it was all dark gray. No reflection.

Prabhupāda: So therefore if I say that they did not go to the moon, how they can support?

Harikeśa: They cannot prove. They are so clever and sophisticated with their nonsense, they can even make the astronauts believe...

Prabhupāda: Therefore I asked you to ask them, "Why Sunday first and Monday next?"

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa:
It's very conceivable that they could have tricked everyone. They
simply have a video. They go up in a space ship around. They simply show
a film from the space ship back to the earth, how they were practicing
in the Arizona desert and they collected some rocks and took it with
them. It's very easy.